Santa.

I think the picture just about says it all, don't you? :)  We knew our feisty little girl would either be all smiles or all screams this year when visiting Santa...after all, she is her spirited self and either very hot or very cold about pretty much everything she does.  We had shown her pictures of Santa in books, on ornaments on the tree, and in her picture with Santa last year (in which she refers to Santa as "danta" and herself as "bebe").  She was all smiles while waiting in line to see Santa and was happy waving to him from a safe distance in dad's arms.  Once we set her down on his lap, she clearly wanted nothing to do with him!  While this picture wasn't exactly the image I had envisioned of my darling daughter sitting on Santa's lap, it certainly has provided us with a lot of laughs and we can't wait to show it to Ella in future years ;).

A few pics of Ella happily waiting in line at Santa's workshop...

 After the traumatizing experience of visiting Santa, we did some shopping, had dinner, and then went to Ella's first "Snowflake Lane".  A tradition I hope we continue!  Every night during the month of December, the main street in Bellevue becomes a winter wonderland, with a drum line, characters dressed up, loud music, and snow (soap suds) falling from the tops of buildings.  Again, Ella was not too impressed with the characters in costume.  She clung on tight to us every time the giant polar bear or Christmas mouse walked by.